BMW Group Malaysia delivered a total of 10,906 units of BMW, MINI and BMW Motorrad vehicles in the country last year, charting a 16% growth increase compared to the same period in 2015 (9,368).
The record breaking achievement is in tandem with that of the BMW Group, which achieved its best ever sales in 2016 with a total of 2,367,603 vehicles sold worldwide.
This marks the sixth year in a row the company has set a new sales record while maintaining its position as the world’s leading premium car company. The steady sales growth mirrored by BMW Group Malaysia throughout the year comes with a clear commitment to continue to innovate and drive the future of premium mobility in the country.
In the details, the BMW brand grew to a record 20% in 2016, delivering 9,000 BMW vehicles from 7,515 vehicles in 2015. The MINI brand also recorded a 19% growth, delivering 902 MINI vehicles from 756 in the previous year while BMW Motorrad delivered 1,004 motorcycles in 2016.
Speaking on the achievement, Han Sang Yun, Managing Director and CEO of BMW Group Malaysia said, “The continued and growing support from our customers and network of dealerships here were the main factors for our best achievements in 2016. On behalf of BMW Group Malaysia, I would like to express my heartfelt gratitude to our customers and dealers here for helping us achieve this milestone in an especially challenging year.”
A Look Back at 2016:
BMW Group Malaysia began 2016 by redefining driving luxury with its flagship model, the all-new BMW 7 Series – the most advanced luxury sedan in its segment and 2016 World Luxury Car Award Winner.
The centenary year also marshalled in the new chapter of Electric Driving Pleasure as the premium automaker introduced the new locally assembled X5 xDrive40e and 330e as part of the automaker’s BMW iPerformance portfolio. The demand for both plug-in hybrids continues to soar and BMW Group Malaysia is gearing up to produce more units in its first full year in 2017 to meet these large demands and take up rate.
With that, BMW Group Malaysia also strengthened its progressive partnership with the Malaysian Green Technology Corporation (GreenTech Malaysia) to offer its BMW i and BMW iPerformance customers access to its ChargeNow services via the GreenTech Malaysia’s ChargEV platform.
The steady performance growth in 2016 was also spurred by the introduction of a breath of new product portfolios for the BMW brand including the new locally assembled variants of the X1 and X4, the new M2 Coupé and a new special variant of the 5 Series, the 528i M Performance Edition which continued to drive their respective segments.
BMW Group Malaysia continued to drive the premium segment with its industry-leading 5 Year Unlimited Mileage Warranty and Free Service Program, the specially designed Tyre Warranty Program along with the well-established White Card program, and the Concierge Services as part of the ConnectedDrive innovation offering, which are still leading key differentiators for the brand in the segment.
Compact premium brand MINI also charted record achievements in 2016, successfully introducing the new Clubman, the new John Cooper Works Pro Edition and the special edition Countryman Park Lane as well as introduced a new 4 Year Unlimited Mileage and Free Service Warranty program to revolutionise the segment.
Key Initiatives in 2017:
In 2017, BMW Group Malaysia will look to drive innovative technology as well as its premium services offering for the automotive industry that will not only augment comfort, convenience and luxury but also promise to amplify Sheer Driving Pleasure and the BMW premium promise.
The move will be in preparation for its export hub initiatives for the 3 Series, 5 Series and 7 Series to Vietnam and the Philippines in 2018 where the premium automaker will also see an increase in its expertise in its local assembly capabilities from over 7,000 vehicles in 2016 to over 10,000 vehicles in 2017 with an investment of over RM10 million.
The leading premium automaker will also open its doors to its newest Regional Parts Distribution Centre facilities at the Free Trade Zone of the Senai International Airport of Iskandar Malaysia. Occupying over 45,000 square metres of land and with an investment of over RM 130 million, the new regional facility will be one of the largest BMW facilities in the region.
“We will continue the momentum we have built here over the previous years where we will focus on introducing to our customers the newest products, innovations as well as premium services which will be industry leading to drive the industry,” said Han.
In saying this, BMW Group Malaysia will implement its Voice to the Customer as well as its newest Road Side Assistant (RSA) program in 2017. Based on the global standard NET Promoter Score (NPS) concept, Voice to the Customer will be the next level of measurement of customer satisfaction in the industry while the new RSA program will be the most comprehensive service offering in the Malaysian automotive industry for on road customer care, peace of mind and maintenance.
“Our customer satisfaction indexes have been the highest in the industry over the last five years. However, in a move for more relevance in changing times in the premium segment, we will implement a new global measurement standard as well as premium on the road, day to day care programs to ensure our customers here get the very best of our capabilities.” said Han.
